Related videos:
Argentina triumphed over Egypt 3-2 on Tuesday in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup, held at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, in one of the most dramatic matches of the tournament so far.
The reigning world champion found themselves down by two goals and needed three goals in the second half to , where they will face the winner between Colombia and Switzerland on Saturday, July 11, in Kansas City.
Yasser Ibrahim opened the scoring in the 15th minute with a header following a corner, sneaking between Lisandro Martínez and Cuti Romero to catch goalkeeper Dibu Martínez off guard. The albiceleste tried to respond immediately, but Lionel Messi missed a penalty in the 21st minute, saved by the Egyptian goalkeeper Mohamed Sobeir.
The second half began with controversy: the VAR disallowed a goal by Mostafa Ziko in the 58th minute due to a prior foul. However, the same forward scored legally in the 67th minute, making it 0-2 and leaving Argentina on the brink of elimination.
The Argentine coach made two simultaneous substitutions in the 66th minute: Tagliafico and De Paul were replaced by Nico González and Lautaro Martínez. The pressure from the Albiceleste intensified immediately.
Cristian "Cuti" Romero closed the gap in the 79th minute with a goal that sparked the comeback. Four minutes later, Messi —who had missed a penalty in the first half— scored the equalizer. And finally, in the 93rd minute, a header from Enzo Fernández secured the victory, 3-2, setting off Argentine euphoria.
The statistical dominance of Argentina was clear throughout the match: 65% possession compared to 35% for Egypt, 18 shots against four, and six corners to one. However, the Africans managed to make the most of their limited opportunities to put the champion team in serious trouble.
With this victory, Argentina advances to the quarter-finals and Egypt is eliminated from the tournament. The Albiceleste reaches this phase after defeating Cape Verde 3-2 in extra time of the Round of 16 on July 3 in Miami, having completed the group stage with a perfect record and nine points.
Messi, at 39 years old, adds yet another goal in what is shaping up to be his last World Cup, turning each match into a historic event for football.
Filed under: